Monster
by Obi the Kid
Summary: Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are sent to a crazy little island to hunt the legendary monster that resides there.
1. Chapter 1

**TITLE:** Monster

**AUTHOR:** Obi the Kid

**RATING:** PG

**CHARACTERS:** Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan (17 years old)

**SUMMARY:** Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are sent to a crazy little island to hunt the legendary monster that resides there.

**DISCLAIMER**: The characters and venue of Star Wars are copyrighted to Lucas Films Limited. I make no profit from the writing or distribution of this story.

**NOTE: **All typos and grammatical errors are my own. Please forgive them.

* * *

Monster – Part 1

* * *

"Master, please tell me again why we are on this floating catastrophe? This is not a boat. The captain should refrain from calling it such."

"We are on a mission, Padawan. Other than bringing visitors from other plants, there are no flying craft permitted on this world. And the only way to get to our destination is by boat. And the only boat that runs between these two islands is this one. Thus, we are here on this boat."

"Please don't call it that, Master. It's a floating death trap. And the floating part, I'm not completely certain about. Oh and by the way, I feel ill."

The ocean rolled around them. The tiny wooden sea craft drifted up one side of the next giant wave and down the other creating a stomach dropping sensation that had both Jedi feeling the effects.

"Don't think about it, Obi-Wan. And if you do think about it, please be sure to direct your aim over the railing."

"That's not a railing, Master. It's a string tied between two sticks."

Qui-Gon grabbed onto a cleat attached to the cabin to keep from falling as the boat lurched forward on the downward side of the next wave. He reached the other hand out to clutch the back of Obi-Wan's tunic to prevent him from tumbling into the black seawater. When they recovered, Obi-Wan immediately lost his stomach. It didn't matter though that he didn't get his head over the side of the boat, as the boat practically went _**through**_ the next wave. Any signs of sickness were quickly blasted away by several tons of salty ocean water.

"How long is this trip, Master?"

"The captain said it was a three hour journey. We've been at it for an hour, give or take."

"Let's go back. This mission isn't that important, is it?"

"To the continued peace efforts of the galaxy as a whole? No. But to those who requested our help? Yes. Just…try and relax."

Another wave. This one crashed over their heads, further water-logging their already soaked clothes. Both were grateful they'd decided to leave their robes on the main island.

Qui-Gon pondered for a moment. Well, he pondered as much as one could ponder while on a floating death trap and trying to keep from losing one's stomach. "Perhaps I should ask the captain about turning back. This doesn't seem to be getting better. We could wait out the storm on the main island."

"I don't think this is a storm, Master. Every so often, when the waves above my head part, I swear I can see blue sky. Captain Lunacy up there is enjoying this. You saw how he smiled at us when we boarded. Those crazy eyes of his. It's weird enough when someone looks at you with two crazy eyes, but he has six. Each one crazier than the next. And for Sith sake, Master, the man has no teeth."

"His name is not Captain Lunacy. It's Loonaki, Obi-Wan. In case you forgot to read the information that I gave you about this planet, it's a crime on this world to mock its citizens. And it's very unbecoming a Jedi to mock the one who holds your life in his hands."

"Is it a crime to use the boat from hell to kill ambassadors who are here to help you? I don't like that man, Master. I don't like this mission. And I really really don't like this boat."

Obi-Wan was slammed to the deck on the next wave. He managed to get his feet under him eventually, though his boots didn't offer much traction on the wooden floorboards. He reached a hand to his head. Braid was still there. Head was still there. Blood was a new addition. "Wonderful. Now I'm bleeding."

He felt the large hand of his master on his head, checking the wound.

"Doesn't appear too serious. Just a cut. You'll live."

"Only until this boat kills me."

"Obi-Wan, please. You disrespect your training by whining. You are a Jedi. You can handle this. I've seen you deal with much worse."

Opening his mouth to complain again, Obi-Wan shut it. Qui-Gon was right. He had been through worse. And he was being a bit whiny about this whole thing. The captain had made this trip hundreds of times, and in this exact hunk of floating wood. He knew these waters. He knew this boat. They would be fine. Just…fine.

He turned towards the bow and grasped a metal cleat with both hands, hoping that the cleat held the rotting wood, and hoping that this journey would end sooner than it was scheduled to.

There was a yell from the cabin and the captain's small blue face stuck out a small window. All six of his eyes wide and looking just a little on the insane side. "Ya Jedi, ya causin' ma boat ta lean ta tha side. Canna take all ya weight on one side of ya. Split up or git ta tha reah. An hang on, Jedi. We in fer a ride like ya neva seen befa. Waves aheah be twice tha size of tha ones we jus wen thra. Bes be holdin' on ta ya stomachs, Jedi. We headin' up an ova."

Qui-Gon looked at his apprentice, who looked back at him, almost begging to be permitted to whine. The master relented. "You may as well."

"I'm seriously thinking about jumping overboard and swimming back. I'd rather take my chances with the viscous fish around here than with Mr. Crazy Eyes."

"It could be worse," Qui-Gon said as the small ship launched itself into unknown heights. They hung on for dear life, to the boat and to each other. Another few feet and they'd be upside down. Both prepared themselves for the boat to flip. The wave crest curled over them.

"IT'S WORSE!" Obi-Wan yelled.

Then a faint cry of "" sounded from the cabin.

And everything went dark.

Seconds later they were in the trough between waves. They were sitting now where they'd been standing seconds before. Each had one hand on a cleat and one hand on each other. Obi-Wan's face had gone pale. He shook the water out of his eyes and tried to catch his breath. Looking over, he saw that his master was in a similar state, but he was also in the process of throwing up his breakfast.

"Master, is this how the Force tells us that it's finished with us? I thought it would be less terrifying than this. And drier."

Qui-Gon's sickness passed, then he turned to eye his apprentice. "The Force has nothing to do with this. This is all the work of that lunatic in the cabin."

"Master, it's very unbecoming a Jedi to mock the one who holds your life in his hands."

The boat pitched forwarded. Then back. Then rocked violently to the side. And back again.

"Please refrain from throwing my words back at me, Obi-Wan."

"I guess it's a bit too late to tell you that I have a bad feeling about this trip."

"I believe I've figured that out now, thank you. And I've also figured out that the council has finally gotten their revenge on us for putting them in their place last year after that disastrous mission to Xianis. Yoda knew something like this would happen. Evil little troll."

"Master, you told me not to call him that, even when he deserved it."

"That's right. However, I can call him that any time I wish. I've earned it. He's been to this planet before. He probably knows the psychopath in the cabin too."

"How can you be so sure, Master?"

"Oh, I'm just guessing. But my guesses when it comes to the council tend to be correct. Scheming circle of…"

He didn't get to finish his sentence as a wave tossed the boat into the air, then slammed it back into the crest of another wave. The bow crashed through the wave taking on all of its water. The boat filled quickly and the weight of the sea began dragging it down. Black waves continued to pound them as the boat slowly began its descent into the sea.

Obi-Wan felt to make sure his breather was handy and within reach, but he didn't grab for it. He figured by the time he took his right hand off of his Qui-Gon's shoulder, that would be long enough for him to quickly tumble to his death. By keeping his hands where they were, it guaranteed a nice slow agonizing death.

"Wait, that's not right. It's the opposite of what I would like to achieve."

"What are you talking about, Obi-Wan?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Just a few morbid thoughts passing through my head right now."

"I don't think it's our time yet, Padawan." The boat lurched forward, but the weight of the water it had taken on caused the lurch to be less dramatic than before. The water had reached the rear of the cabin, leaving the Jedi knee deep. "Or perhaps it is our time."

"Master, this cannot be happening. We are trained Jedi. Jedi do not sink slowly to their deaths in floating death traps made of twigs. That's just wrong. Didn't you read adventure holo novels when you were an apprentice? Those Jedi were heroes. They never died…like this. This is so unbecoming of what we are."

"What would you suggest, Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon glanced at the water, now up to his waist.

The engine of the boat made a loud pounding sound, backfired five times, then exploded into a ball of fire, which the salt water quickly doused.

"Um."

"That's what I thought."

A strange sound came from in front of them, followed by a lot of yelling. The captain screamed something and popped his head out of the rear cabin door.

"Aye ya! Bala! Ye na gonna take ma down wit ya theez time! BALA BALA BALA!"

Then he disappeared again.

Qui-Gon frowned. "That was interesting." His words were halted when the sinking boat came to a sudden and violent stop. They were thrown against the outside of the cabin walls. Obi-Wan's head slammed against the cleat that he'd been holding with his left hand. More blood. He suddenly felt very lightheaded

"Master…"

"I have you, Obi-Wan." The padawan had lost his hold when he hit his head, and began sliding away from Qui-Gon. The big Jedi had grabbed the boy under the arms and held him securely while also holding tight to the cabin. The boat's rocking had stopped. The sinking had stopped. In fact water seemed to be draining out of the boat. With no waves around them or above them, the skies were indeed blue. Breathtaking blue.

A few more shouts, then the captain leaned out of the cabin once more.

"We hea, Jedi. Ya ken git off ma boat. I be pickin' ya up en a few days when ya return ta tha main isle."

Qui-Gon stared at the man. "I don't suppose you might bring a bigger boat next time?"

"Nah. Don be needin' a bigga boat. But ya kin ask fer a ride unda tha wata. We ha subcraft tha dive deep. Ride a bit smoota when ya go unda."

"You wait until now to tell us this?"

"Sorra, but ya didn' ask. Na, git offa ma boat." And he turned his small crazy blue-skinned, six eyed self away from them and vanished into his cabin.

With an arm still supporting Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon heard the young man moan. He had his feet under him, but his knees wouldn't lock into position to move. At least he was conscious, and not completely dead weight.

"Obi-Wan, come on. I see dry land only a few feet from here. Looks like you've got two nasty cuts now. I'll see about them once we are settled. Come on, get your legs straight."

After a few minutes, he managed a semi-upright position. Good enough to support most of his own frame, although his master still had an arm around his shoulders should he lose his balance. Which he did as soon as they stepped onto the island. Seemed he still had his sea legs, and couldn't find his land legs. Qui-Gon sat him down on the sandy beach out of reach of the waves. Gently he slapped his hands on either side of the boy's face.

"Obi-Wan, look at me."

"Huh?" The blue-green eyes were clear but unfocused.

Another round of easy slaps before he got more the type of response he sought.

"Master, why are you hitting me?"

"I am trying to focus you. How do you feel?"

"Like I just went ten rounds with a Sith lord." Obi-Wan finished off his sentence with a roll to his side. Then threw up the last remaining contents of his stomach. Looking at Qui-Gon, he blinked several times. "Okay, I'm better now."

"You shouldn't lie to your master, Padawan. Get up." He pulled him to his feet and walked him towards the meeting point for the mission. A small hut in the center of the main village.

A small blue thing shuffled out of the hut and glared up at them. It also had six eyes, no teeth and a crazed look. Unlike Captain Loonaki, this one had a thin layer of blue fir skirting its blue skin.

Obi-Wan couldn't help himself. "Master, it's another one. Please don't let him put us on a boat. Please."

"Hush, Padawan." His eyes took in the little being standing in front of them. It was a sort-of humanoid, other than the six eyes thing and the fact that it was about three feet tall, and it's feet and hands looked more like fingered flippers than actual hands. It spoke in an accent similar to Captain Loonaki's.

"Ya mus be tha Jedi. 'Bout time ya ga hea. I am Chief Krazenis."

"Oh, no." Obi-Wan let out before he was hushed again.

"Ya gonna be heah fa fer days. Ya sleep en tha hut ova theah next ta tha anima pen. Ya get use ta tha smell, don ya be worryin' none. And tha won be bitin' ya none eitha. Can't say tha same fer tha flies. Tha been waitin' fer huma blood. Tha gonna like em some Jedi. Go na. We meet en tha mernin', first light. Ya late an we burn ya hut ta tha groun, wit ya en it. An I ain't jokin' none."

With a humph, he spun and waddled back into his hut, leaving the Jedi standing in the middle of the village looking completely befuddled.

Qui-Gon shook his head. "That was perhaps the strangest thing I've ever met."

"And his name is Chief Craziness. This is bad, Master. This is very very bad. Let's just leave in the middle of the night. We can swim back."

"And be eaten by one of their deep-dwelling monster legends? I don't think so."

"Those aren't true, Master. It's like those stories that our crèche masters used to tell to scare us. Monsters of the deep. Monsters of the forest. All nonsense."

"Right. Well, at least we don't meet until tomorrow morning. That'll give you time to rest."

Obi-Wan was helped to their hut. Inside was nothing. Just ground, mostly sand with a few stray blades of grass poking through.

"Um, where do we um…ah…"

The master took a step back outside for a moment. Then returned quickly. "The woods behind us?"

"I told you we should have gone back, Master. Captain Loony almost had us killed coming through the Sea of Death on the Boat from Hell. Then Chief Crazy threatens to burn us alive or feed us to the flies if we are late to the meeting. And now we have only sand to sleep on and woods to… You know, Master, this whole Jedi thing is vastly overrated at times."

"Yes, it is. But it is what we are. We've been though a great deal so far in our five years together, Obi-Wan. I don't suppose four days here will kill us."

"No, that'll be the boat ride home."

"You may as well find a comfortable spot on the sand and lie down for a while. Your words are a little slurred. Probably a small concussion. Try and sleep it off. I'll wake you in the morning. I'll see if I can find some type of food as well. I don't see anyone volunteering anything edible."

"I don't even want to think about food right now, Master," Obi-Wan said as he knelt down, then tried to get comfortable lying on his back. Then his stomach. Then his side. The walls of the hut were solid, so he tried leaning against one of those instead. Not comfortable either.

Finally he settled on his side, and despite the discomfort, was sound asleep in a matter of minutes.

Qui-Gon watched over him for a moment before venturing into the village, hoping to retrieve a few supplies for their stay.

The village was larger than he'd anticipated. There were hidden turns and crevices that led to at least a hundred tiny huts. One path took him to what appeared to be a market. Tens of small blue creatures shambled here and there, zipping with uncanny speed from one place to another. None seemed to pay him any mind. If they noticed him, they gave no indication.

Qui-Gon spotted a small, what appeared to be fruit-cart. There were brightly colored ornaments stacked neatly, looking extremely edible. An even tinier blue creature popped out from behind the cart startling the Jedi. Kneeling down, Qui-Gon addressed the curious thing. It was about eighteen inches tall and it's blue fir and skin was a lighter shade than the others. Perhaps it was younger. Although – and Master Yoda came to mind - the Jedi knew more than to assume that tiny meant young. That damn evil troll that had gotten he and his apprentice into this to begin with. But that was for another time. He addressed the creature.

"Hello. I am Ambassador Qui-Gon Jinn. May I purchase some of your food?"

"Ye, Jedi. Na eata ma fud. Ye gotz te ge Meetah te help ye. I only a babe, ye kna."

"Meetah?"

The petite creature let out a wail that seemed to echo through the entire island. Qui-Gon had to cover his ears the high-pitched cry was so intense. It could have passed for a warning siren on Coruscant.

Seconds after the shriek ended another blue thing was at the little one's side. Must be Meetah, Jinn thought.

"Blech! Jedi. Wha ye wan?"

"Food, if I may. My apprentice and I are here for several days. We will need food to sustain us during that time. We were not advised to bring it with us."

"Ye ga ta talk ta Chief Krazenis. Canna give ye fud unless he sa. Go na. Ye bad fa business. Go go go!"

Arching an eyebrow at the reaction, the big man stood and walked away. He tried a few other food carts but was greeted with the same reaction each time. Finally he submitted and returned to the hut to check on Obi-Wan.

The boy was sleeping quietly. Qui-Gon was glad of that. The injuries could have been much more serious. Rest would do him well. And since there was no reason to actually be awake right now, it was another reason to sleep. The master settled onto the sand next to his apprentice. The size of the hut barely allowed his long frame to stretch out, but he managed. There was no way they could remain on this island for four days without having some type of sustenance in their systems. The animals in the pen next to their hut would soon begin to look very appetizing.

Tbc…


	2. Chapter 2

Monster – Part 2

* * *

Qui-Gon awoke quickly the next morning. He'd remembered the threat of being burned alive if they were late to the meeting. No sign of sunlight yet. Shaking Obi-Wan awake, there was a flash of concern when the boy's first words were extremely slurred.

"M'sr, wha happen…?"

"Obi-Wan, you must wake. We need to prepare for the morning meeting. First light is almost here."

The words cleared some. "It's very early, M'sr…my head hurs…"

"I figured that. Come on. I'll do the talking."

"Got sand in my pants." Obi-Wan found an upright position and steadied himself as he stood. The slurs were gone. "Master, I um…have to go. Really."

"Normally I would ask our guests where the facilities are, but after my forte into the village yesterday evening looking for food, I suspect anyone I ask will just tell me to go see Chief Craziness."

"Krazenis, Master."

"Right. Just…go into the woods. Try and stay out of sight. And keep your com link on in case they decide to burn you at the stake or something."

Hurrying from the tent, the young man melted into the forest. Thankfully the deeper he went, the more dense the tree and bush covering. With a sigh of relief, he did what he'd come to do and hurried back in the direction of the hut. He ran as quickly as he could given the logs and holes he had to dodge. Evidently he wasn't careful enough because the next thing he knew, he was flat on his face, landing with a thump.

"Ow. Sith. What the…"

Rolling over, he found himself surrounded by ten blue creatures, each pointing some type of sharpened stick at him. Several of them poked him with it, drawing blood when the skin was broken beneath his tunic.

"Ouch! Stop that."

"See, ye Jedi bleed. I tol ye theh du."

Obi-Wan grimaced in pain as more of the creatures stuck him with their spears. Impulsively he reached for his light saber, but then thought better of it. It would probably be a bad idea to slaughter the people they had come to help. So, he dealt with the pinching pain as the jabs continued. Thankfully the spears were tiny and the damage they did, although painful, only caused small bleeding wounds. Albeit, a large number of small bleedings wounds.

His com link clicked. The creatures jumped back. "Good. Stay away. Those things hurt."

He tried to stand before answering his com link, but the spears returned. Obi-Wan instead sat upright and answered his com. "Yes, Master?"

"Did you fall in, Obi-Wan? The sun is coming up. You need to return here immediately."

"I would love to, Master, however a band of those…things has me cornered. They've been sticking me with spears for the last few minutes. They won't let me stand. May I use my saber on them, Master?"

For a short blip, Qui-Gon seriously considered allowing his apprentice to…no, that just wouldn't be proper ambassador behavior. "No, Padawan. Not yet anyway. I'll be right there. Turn on your com-tracking signal."

Obi-Wan did so, and Qui-Gon found him easily. He cleared his throat as he approached so the attention would focus on him and allow Obi-Wan to get off the ground. The ten blue creatures turned to the larger Jedi and pointed their spears at him, each taking a defensive stance.

"Ye thin we skeered of ye Jedi, cuz ya tall? We na. Ye canna be en theze wuds, ye kna. Ye disturb ye hunt. Go!"

With the apprentice now on his feet, Qui-Gon observed the small yet numerous spots of blood seeping through parts of his tunic and pants. "More bleeding?"

"They kept poking me, Master. It hurt. You don't know how much restraint I had to use to keep from frying them with my light saber. Are you sure these people want us here? It sure doesn't appear that way."

"I thought before we arrived that I had some idea of what we were doing here. I must admit however, at the moment, I am at a loss."

The woods ended and they stepped out into the sand just in time to see their hut burning to the ground. Neither said a word. Instead, they just stared at the burning heap of wood and the small blue creatures flopping away from it…laughing?

Obi-Wan eventually broke the silence. "Well, there is a bright side to all of this. We can now just sleep in the woods and we'll be closer to the bathroom. These people are serious, Master. They would have burned us alive."

"It appears you are correct, Padawan." Qui-Gon blinked the smoke out of his eyes as he began walking towards the Chief's hut for the first meeting.

"Master," Obi-Wan said after they'd moved only a few steps. "Did you feel that? The island moved."

"The island did not move, Obi-Wan. You're probably still feeling the effects of the concussion. You do seem a little shaky. Yesterday was quite a day. Come on now."

The meeting area was a large circle outside of the Chief's residence. There were at least thirty creatures present. Some tiny. Some just small. Most seemed to be in the three foot range. Other than slight variations in blue and in the amount of fur, there weren't many obvious differences in appearance. Neither Jedi could identify male or female, young or old. Chief Krazenis wore a long black headdress, decorated with colorful beads. The Jedi were grateful that at least they could identify _**him**_ in a crowd. The small blue man looked unhappy and he bantered on and on about having visitors on his planet. He wasn't in favor of it.

Qui-Gon approached slowly, both he and Obi-Wan bowing slightly when they reached the middle of the circle. The creatures had parted to allow them access to the center. The Chief spat at them, held his spear high, sounded a strange cry, then glared up at the Jedi.

"Wha ye gotta sa fer yaself, Jedi? Ya late. I werned ye na ta be."

"Chief Krazenis, if I may. My apprentice and I were delayed by a band of your people in the woods. They would not let my apprentice leave. As you can see, he has suffered some minor wounds from their aggressiveness."

"Ye'll live. Ya shunt be en tha wuds, ya kna? Off limits ta outsida's."

"Perhaps then someone should have informed us of that. There are several things that we require during our stay here. May I address those concerns?"

"Wha ya prob, Jedi?"

"Food would be helpful. I attempted to buy food from one of your pushcarts and was denied. We cannot go four days here without food intake."

"Ye canna baa from tha carts. Tha na fa outsida's."

Obi-Wan frowned. He sensed a pattern developing here. But he kept his mouth shut and tried to keep his growling stomach quiet as his master continued.

"Facilities. To wash up and to relieve ourselves."

"Ah, ye wuz en tha wuds fer tha? No wunda tha had ta spee ya. Ya use tha wata or dig a hole en tha san. Stay outta tha wuds, I tey ya."

"That's helpful, I suppose. And since our hut has been burned down, we require additional sleeping quarters."

"Nah, ye don. Ya wuz late. I werned ya, memba? Ye ken sleep on tha san on tha beach."

"With no shelter over our heads?"

"Ye'll live."

The big man took a frustrated breath and sighed. Obi-Wan could feel his teacher becoming annoyed, and it surprised him. It took a great deal to aggravate Qui-Gon Jinn. But Chief Crazy was pushing all the right buttons. Qui-Gon managed to keep surfacing emotions under control for now by reaching out to the Force before forging ahead with the village leader.

"Very well. May I ask then for what reason do you required our presence? There does not seem to be any disturbance or war or famine. In fact we feel quite unwelcomed. If you called for assistance, I am not understanding why. If you could enlighten us please?"

"Monza!"

"What?"

"Monza! Monza! We ga ya beeg colossal Monza en tha valla. Been eatin' tha animas and skeerin' tha babes. One babe gone missin', Monza be eatin' em."

Qui-Gon nodded slowly as Obi-Wan took a step closer to him. "You have a monster in the valley eating your animals and children?"

"Ya. Ya gonna ha ta keel heem or ya no leavin' hea alive."

"We kill it or you kill us?"

"Ya."

"Okay, sounds fair."

Obi-Wan looked up at Qui-Gon in disbelief. "Fair? Master!"

"Hush, Obi-Wan. Chief, what if we decide to not handle this task for you? We could leave the island without you knowing."

"Ya think? Nah. Ye canna go undawata, ya skeered on top tha wata. Ya stuck hea until tha monsta is dead, or ya be tha same. Go na. Keel tha beastie!"

"We still require food, Chief Krazenis. Without eating we'll have no strength to kill anything."

"Ya, tru. I sen Meetah and tha babe ta feed ya once evra morn. Take what ye need fer tha day. Na go, Jedi. Get out ma village."

The circle parted once again as the Jedi left and wandered back to where their hut had been. Since there was no longer any shelter there for them, they moved back to the beach, near to where they had first come ashore.

"Master, they want us to kill a colossal monster? We're not prepared for monster hunting. And now we have to sleep on the beach, with no shelter. And we have to relieve ourselves in the ocean?"

"Or the sand. Take your pick. You can dig a hole."

"And to top things off, we either kill this giant baby eating monster, or we die."

"That appears to be the size of it, yes."

"And you are okay with this?"

"Obi-Wan, why would I be okay with this?"

"You are so calm, Master. I mean I felt you getting annoyed when Chief Crazy was talking to you, but you don't seem upset now."

"How will getting upset help our situation?"

"It won't."

"Then why should I do it?"

"You shouldn't."

"Then why are we having this conversation?"

"Because I need to learn to be more patient and control my anxiety better."

"Exactly. You are learning, my Padawan. We will manage somehow."

Qui-Gon moved to the edge of the woods and gathered sticks and twigs. Obi-Wan followed the example. A half hour later, they'd stacked them into a circular pile.

"We know these people don't mind fire, so we will build ourselves a fire pit. It'll get chilly in the evenings. We shall make ourselves a camp."

"Master, are you sure this monster even exists? It could just be some rogue animal feeding on their own animals. After all, they are penned up. It would be an easy snack for a predator type to get inside the fence and steal a meal. And if it was eating their children, why would they still live here? Why not run from it? I'm not sure about these monster legends, Master. The water ones or the land-dwelling."

"Regardless, we are here to help. So we must. Look there." Qui-Gon pointed towards the village in the distance. A pushcart was being brought towards them. It made good progress until it rolled into the deeper sand. Then it could go no further. The master Jedi figured it would be easy enough for them to walk the hundred yards to meet Meetah there, but he'd already had enough of these people. And if they were going to play games with him, it wasn't out of line for him to play back.

He reached a hand out, calling on the Force. The cart floated out of the sand, and hovered about two feet off the ground. Meetah let out a scream of shock-surprise. The babe she had with her though, the one that had given him lip earlier in the day, seemed delighted. It watched the cart float effortlessly above the ground. Obi-Wan swore he heard a giggle come from the small child.

The cart drifted away from the blues and towards the Jedi, coming to a gentle landing right in front of the fire pit.

"Nice, Master. I knew you were more annoyed than you let on." Obi-Wan reached for a purple fruit. Qui-Gon slapped his hand way.

"Don't be rude, Padawan. It's enough that I just stole their cart, the least we can do is wait for them to get here before we help ourselves."

"Yes, Master. I'm hungry though. I think that's why I have such a bad headache."

"So the concussion has nothing to do with it?"

"Well, yes. A little."

"Obi-Wan…". The tone was disapproving.

"Okay, yes. Hunger has not given me a headache. But I'm still starving, Master. I lost several meals on the boat trip here yesterday, remember?"

"As did I."

Meetah was hesitant to approach them. Wary of the power she had just seen. The younger one was not so guarded and he ran to the cart. "Cheef sa ya kin ha fud. Meetah ta ye wha ya kin have. Na touchin'. Ha ya leeft tha cart like tha? Kin ya sho ma?"

"Unfortunately, no. We cannot show you. It's only possible in those who are Force sensitive." Qui-Gon eyed the food as Meetah continued to inch towards them.

"Wha Farce? Wha ya meanin'?"

"It's difficult to explain. Hello, Meetah."

The babe's mother finally stood next to her cart, reaching out to touch it, half expecting it to fly into the air again. It didn't. She turned to Qui-Gon. "Ya kin ha wha ye wan, Jedi. Ya got pay fer it. We be hea each morn. Ya kna hea, ya na git tha fud."

Qui-Gon nodded and gave a small friendly bow. He motioned for Obi-Wan to do the same. "Thank you, Meetah. We have the ability to pay you. May we take any of the selections?"

"Ya."

Another nod and the big Jedi grabbed a handful of fruit and other items that looked non-lethal. Obi-Wan followed his cue. "If I may, Meetah. What is your babe's name?"

"Laari. Babe es Laari. Ya leavin' em alone, Jedi. He kna fa sale."

Obi-Wan snorted as his master shook his head. "We don't wish to buy him. We only want to refer to him by his name."

"Tha's fine. Ya ga ya fud. Git ma cart outta tha san. I leavin' na."

"Very well." A flick of the hand and the cart lifted back towards the harder ground. Meetah and Laari got behind it to push and hurried off. The Jedi took their food supply and set it into what they hoped was a secure area, buried partially in the sand.

"Master, the child's name is Larry?"

"No, Obi-Wan. Laari."

"Yes, okay. Now what do we do? Just run into the woods looking for a giant, animal-eating, child-devouring monster?"

"I suppose we should if we want to live."

"That makes no sense, you do know that?"

"I do, Eat a couple pieces of fruit before we go. We'll try and be back by nightfall."

They ate. They ventured into the woods. They found the valley. They found nothing else. No monster. No evidence that a monster or any large predator had even been in the valley. No tracks. No waste. No decaying prey. Just bushes and lots of abnormally tall grasses and wild flowers.

"Master this is all just a figment of these people's imagination. We've been out here for over five hours. There's not even any trampled grass. There's nothing here."

Qui-Gon sighed again. Something he'd been doing a lot of on this trip. Pondering out loud, he said, "Why would they ask us all the way out here to their planet, to this island, where they clearly dislike us…just to have us wander the woods and valley looking for something that doesn't exist?"

The boy shrugged and played with his braid. "Perhaps they're all having similar dreams or something, and they only _**think **_there's a monster roaming the island. There could be something here affecting their minds. Or something in the food acts on them as a hallucinogen."

The pair made another pass through the valley, all senses alert to anything. Still there was nothing. That is until they entered the woods on the opposite side of the valley. It was there that a single chorus of high-pitched clicking sounds got their attention. They picked up into a jog to follow the sound. Five minutes later, Qui-Gon was hanging upside down from a tree and Obi-Wan was at the bottom of a twenty foot pit.

Obi-Wan yelled up to where the older man dangled directly above the pit. "Master, are you all right?"

"Other than being strung upside down from a tree? Yes. And you?"

"Bleeding again. The sides of his pit are edged in sharp spears. They caught my left side as I fell. Ripped my tunic and punctured my skin. Quite painful actually."

The sound of Qui-Gon's light saber igniting was the master's response. He made short work of the ropes holding his feet. Somersaulting to the ground, right side up, he landed gracefully. "Can you jump out?"

"I think so." The young Jedi focused himself, putting pain aside, and launched himself up and out of the deep pit. His landing was not so graceful as his foot slid on the loose dirt at the edge of the cavity. His head whapped against a nearby log as his body landed on its freshly injured side. Grimacing in pain, he tried to get up. Large hands held him down.

"Sit still, Padawan. Just for a moment. Gather yourself. Let me look at the wound. How's your head?"

The boy blinked up at his master trying to shake out the cobwebs. "Master, there are two of you right now. That can't be good, can it?"

"Probably not. Just lie still for a few moments." Qui-Gon pulled at the ripped tunic and felt along the new wound. It was bleeding, and though several of the areas were deeper contusions, Obi-Wan would live. "Not too bad. When we get back to camp, I'll…well, I don't suppose they have much first aid here. And if they do, I'm sure they won't share it with us. I'll see what I have in my bag, assuming of course that my bag is still there when we return. I left it buried in the sand."

Obi-Wan signed. "I'm tired of this place, Master. Very very tired of this place."

Qui-Gon grinned. "How many of me do you see now?"

Another slow blink. "Just one. I'm all right." With the assistance from his master, Obi-Wan struggled to his feet. "So is this a trap that the villagers set for their monster?"

"It would appear so. Although it's not designed for a very large monster. That pit can't be more than twenty feet deep. And if whatever creature has any height or size to it, it's head would have been scraping the ground had it been the one hanging upside down from that tree. Perhaps these people have no concept of size."

"Maybe they've seen it."

"Possible."

"We should ask them, Master."

Qui-Gon nodded. Since their first foray into monster hunting had been a failure, without even a sighting or a shred of evidence that one even existed, more information would be valuable. Though he doubted the Chief would be willing to provide anything more to them.

"We've been at this all day. I'd rather not be out here when it's dark. You never know what else we might step into. Let's return to camp, but by way of the main village. If the Chief won't talk to us, perhaps others will. Then I want to treat those fresh wounds of yours."

Other than the pesky flies that had finally found them, the walk to the village was uneventful. The flies however turned out to be a difficult obstacle for Obi-Wan and they feasted on his exposed skin. Welts popped up quickly and by the time they arrived in the village, his skin had broken out quite severely.

Qui-Gon took pity on the boy and offered, "These people must have a salve for that, or something to prevent the biting. There has to be some type of medical person in the village. I can't imagine these creatures never get ill or wounded." They stopped in front of Chief Krazenis' hut.

"Should we knock?" Obi-Wan asked, scratching at the welts on his neck.

"Stop scratching. And I'm not sure. Maybe we should just…Hello in there? This is Ambassador Jinn. May I speak to the Chief please?"

A few minutes passed before a tiny blue creature ventured out. He wore a red armband that marked him as a minion of the Chief. "Wha ya wan, Jedi?"

"Information and medical supplies. We have questions for the Chief. May we see him for a moment?"

"De ya keel tha beastie?"

"We saw no sign or evidence of a monster. That's what we would like to discuss with him."

"Ya stay thea. I see." He vanished into the hut and returned about ten seconds later. "Tha Chief na wan see ya, Jedi."

"Please, we need more information. We need to know if anyone from your village has actually seen the monster. How large it is? What does it look like?"

"Nah, we na see tha monstah."

"Then how do you know there is one?"

"Eatin' da babes and eatin da anima's."

"Do you have proof that babes or animals were eaten?"

"Da babes tey us."

"That ones that were eaten?"

"Ya."

"So, the babes that were supposedly eaten by the monster, have told you that there is a monster?"

"Ya."

"And you see no issues with your logic in that explanation?"

"Nah."

"I see. Where might I find one of those babes?"

"Meetah."

"Meetah is not a babe."

"Meetah's babe, Laari."

"Laari was eaten by the monster?"

"Ya. Go nah, I ga na ma ta say." And with that, he vanished into the hut.

Qui-Gon stood shaking his head, trying to make sense of what he'd just heard, but unable to do so. "Obi-Wan, did you follow any of that? Obi-Wan?"

When the younger man didn't answer, Qui-Gon turned around to see the boy staring at the ground, bouncing slightly from one foot to the other.

"Obi-Wan!"

"Huh? Oh, yes, Master? What's wrong?"

"What's wrong with you?"

The island is moving again. I felt it. It swayed to the left, and then back again."

"Sure it did. And the babes that the monster has been eating are feeding us breakfast tomorrow morning."

"What?"

"You weren't paying any attention."

"No, I'm sorry, Master. I'm…preoccupied. The island is moving, my head hurts, my face and hands and my back are all broken out and itchy, my side is throbbing and bleeding."

"I know." Qui-Gon said gently, again trying to have some sympathy for his learner. "Let's wander the village for a short time. Must be a medical hut around here somewhere."

* * *

Tbc…


	3. Chapter 3

Monster – Part 3

* * *

It didn't take long for them to identify the medical area. Babes were screaming, as children always did when healers or doctors were treating them. Mothers were soothing the screaming babes.

"Approach slowly. If possible, we'd like these people to help us rather than chase us away."

The Jedi moved towards the hut, found a spot outside with other waiting patients and sat quietly. The tiniest of the blue villagers wandered to them. It poked Qui-Gon in the knee. The Jedi did nothing. Another poke. Qui-Gon continued to sit still. Another poke. Finally the big Jedi poked back. He poked the babe in the belly. The babe giggled, then poked Qui-Gon in the belly. The scene played itself out until the mother came and saw her child too near the foreign man. The babe screamed when it was taken away from Qui-Gon. Eventually the mother let it go, and it hurried back to start the poking game again. It's giggles were contagious, and before long, all the waiting babes that had been screaming, were sitting in front of the Jedi and poking him in the knee and belly. By the time the doctor came out of the hut to see what the disturbance was, Qui-Gon had been tackled by ten or more babes who were sitting on or around him, giggling hysterically.

Sitting off to the side, Obi-Wan found the scene more than amusing. "Master, I think you've made friends."

Qui-Gon glared at him from where he lay on his back, but had to admit to having a little fun. And the laughing of the babes was indeed contagious.

The doctor moved in to break up the pile, clapping his flipper hands and making several loud shrieking sounds. Immediately the babes stopped their game and moved away from the Jedi. The giggling hadn't stopped though. Qui-Gon picked himself up and bowed to the doctor. "My apologies for the interference. We were looking for a medical person."

"Ya fon heem. I doc Helah. What ya wan?"

Obi-Wan stifled a small laugh at the little man's name. Qui-Gon nudged him through the Force. "Sorry, Master."

"Doc Healer, we are ambassadors on your planet. But have encountered some problems."

Doc Helah looked up at the Jedi and grunted. "Flas, tha been eatin' ya. Ya mus ha blud on ya. Tha ga fa tha blud. Bitin an bitin. Ya then go itchin an itchin."

Just the mention of the biting and itching and Obi-Wan started scratching again.

"Doc Healer, do you have an ointment that might help my apprentice? Anything to ease the discomfort? And perhaps anything to lessen the biting?"

"Ya shud ha got sumthin befa. I help ya, cuz ya help da babes nah be skeered. Tha like ya."

Qui-Gon smiled and bowed again. "We would be most grateful."

The little doctor returned to his hut and returned with an arm full of small jars. "Ya take theez. Ona fa itchin. One fa blud. One ta kee da flas away. I nah make ya pay da monies, cuz ya help ma weeth da babes."

"Thank you. Thank you very much."

"Ya go nah. I see ta tha babes nah."

"Doc Healer, one more thing if I might. Have you heard about this monster that the Chief has asked us to find?"

"Ya."

"Have you seen it?"

"Nah."

"Do you know anyone who has seen it?"

"Nah."

"Do you know if this creature has eaten any of the babes?"

"Nah."

"Do you know if Meetah's babe, Laari was eaten by the monster?"

"Who tae ya tha?"

"The Chief's associate."

"Ah."

"Is it true?"

"Ya seen Laari?"

"Yes."

"Laari look eaten ta ya?"

"No."

"Ya figga tha one out. Go nah. I got babes ta see."

The Jedi thanked him again and walked away, back towards their camp. Obi-Wan immediately slathered himself in ointment. The relief was almost instant. The welts didn't make for a pretty sight, but the irritation was many times less. "This is powerful salve, Master," he remarked as they found their camp. "I wonder if it works on flies other than what's native to this planet."

"Hopefully you won't have to find out." Qui-Gon stopped his words and came to a halt when he saw what was in front of them. Nothing. "Our fire pit has disappeared. This is getting out of hand."

"With all due respect, Master, it's been out of hand since we stepped foot on that boat. Why would they remove our fire pit?"

"I don't know, but we'll just build another. Grab any scrap pieces of wood you can find around the forest edge. I wouldn't venture into the forest, with full darkness coming on."

Not long after, both Jedi returned to the site. Neither held any sticks or branches in their arms. "Master, they actually cleaned the forest edge of twigs and branches. Excuse me for asking, but what in Sith's hell is wrong with these people?"

"I supposed they found my buried bag as well and removed that. I'll see if it's still there. I buried it near that large rock there." The bag was still there, and held a few medical supplies and other odds and ends. "At least something got past them. It appears that our leftover food from this morning is gone however. I placed the basket that Meetah gave us in that brush there. It's gone. Basket and all. So, I know the animals didn't eat it."

"Don't be too certain, Master. If the invisible monsters around these parts eat babes, why wouldn't livestock eat baskets?" The boy plopped himself down on the sand and leaned back against the nearby rock. "I suggest we sit here and not do anything until someone can explain what is going on. I'm tired. My head hurts. The left side of my body is on fire. I'm hungry. I'm cold."

"Anything else?"

"Yes. Lots more, but…I shouldn't be whining. Sorry, Master. This is just so frustrating."

Sitting down beside his apprentice, Qui-Gon reached into his bag and retrieved several sterilizing pads. "Lift your tunic." The older Jedi hissed as he saw the bloody mess on Obi-Wan's left side. Most of it was dried, but there was some fresh blood. The area was bruised and promising to look worse in a few hours. "I need water to clean it before I sterilize. Salt water will have to do, since our drinking water is gone. Hold still for a minute." Hurrying to the shoreline, Qui-Gon filled a small plastic cup with cold sea water. Despite Obi-Wan's grimaces of pain, he managed to clean the area well enough. It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do. He then applied some of the other ointment that the doctor had given them, and used most of their bandages to secure the area. "That's all we can do, unless I can find more medical supplies."

"Perhaps if you let the babes climb on you and tickle you again, the doctor will take pity on us."

"And perhaps if you close your eyes and sleep for a while, you'll feel better. You're exhausted, Obi-Wan. As am I. Sleep while you can. Who knows what tomorrow might bring."

"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan nodded as he maneuvered himself in the sand and found a cubby hole between two rocks to lean back. When he slept, Qui-Gon ventured towards the forest. He needed to find some type of firewood. They would have a fire tonight. Using his saber for light, he crept into the dense trees. Sure enough, there was plenty of kindling about fifty feet into the forest.

He gathered a large armful of branches. A twig broke nearby. Someone was in the forest with him. Light saber ready, Qui-Gon waved it over his head to spread the light and better his view. He saw nothing, though his keen Jedi senses told him to not trust his eyes. Then another twig snapped.

"I hear you. I know where you are. Step out or I will be forced to use my weapon."

Surprisingly that was all it took and a familiar blue babe stepped out from behind a tree. "Na git ma wit ya weepan, Jedi. I na du na ta ya."

"Laari, what are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be home with your mother?"

"Meetah sleepin. I in tha wuds."

"So you snuck out to spy on me?"

"Ya."

"At least you're honest. Do you know who took our firewood and food?"

"Ya."

"Who?"

"Tha Chief."

"Why?"

"He nah like ya. Say ya fail en keetchin' da beastie."

"We've been here for one day."

"Ya, but ya Jedi ah famus fa keelin monstah's."

"Famous for killing monsters? I've never seen a monster in my life, much less hunted or killed one."

"Ah, na? Ya na jokin?"

"No, I'm not joking. None of this is funny." Qui-Gon sighed and holstered his saber. All went dark as full night came suddenly, but he knew where he'd dropped the armload of firewood, and bent down confidently to scoop it up. Without another word, he marched out of the forest the same path he'd come in. Laari followed.

The fire was quickly set and ignited. Sabers came in handy during times like this. Qui-Gon set the fire close enough to his sleeping apprentice that the boy would be able to benefit from the heat. Laari watched the big man's every move then followed with his eyes as he tended the younger Jedi, checking his wounds and putting a hand on his forehead to look for illness. Laari was familiar with these actions. His mother had spent much time carrying for him in much the same way as the Jedi.

"Tha babe Jedi, ya eel?"

"He's not ill, just wounded."

"Nah gud ta be hurtin. Ya keere fa heem like Meetah keere fa me when I eel. Ya Jedi na bad."

Qui-Gon looked over at the tiny figure, his dark and very young eyes were concerned and serious. Laari eyed Obi-Wan with a hint of sadness in his face. "Wha ya call tha babe Jedi?"

"You mean his name?"

"Ya."

"Obi-Wan."

Laari blinked at Qui-Gon then giggled. "Ya ga funi names. Ahbee-Wa?"

"Close enough."

"An wha ya called, Jedi?"

"My name is Qui-Gon."

Another giggle. "Kwa-Ga?"

"That'll work. Better than being called Jedi all the time. Laari can I ask you a question?"

"Ya."

"Did you get eaten by the monster?"

"Ya."

"You did?"

"Ya. Monstah speet ma out. Mus na like tha babes."

"So you've seen the monster?"

"Ya. Ya wan kna wha tha monstah is?"

"That would be good information, yes."

"I keen sha ya, t'marra."

"You'll take us to where it lives?"

"I keen. It's na fa. Chief kna's too."

"The Chief knows where the monster lives?"

"Ya, tha Chief been ta see that monstah."

"One moment. Let me get this correct. You were eaten by the monster, it spit you out. You know where it lives. The Chief, the person who asked us to come here, knows where it lives, and no one has told us any of this information? Instead they burn our hut, steal our food, bury our fire pit, and spear my apprentice."

"Ya na ask, Kwa-Ga. I cuuda tol ya."

"I didn't figure to ask you. Why would I think that you, a tiny babe, would have any information on this at all? Or that you would have been eaten by the creature and then spit back out? This planet is somewhat backwards."

"Babes kna. Babes sneek and spyee."

"And get eaten evidently."

"Tha ma fault. I tees tha monstah. He na like tha."

Qui-Gon hung his head. "This is exhausting. You teased the monster, so he ate you. Has the monster eaten any of your livestock animals?"

"Ya, buh only tha ded ones. Tha livin ones na botha by tha beastie."

"Then why does your Chief say that the monster is eating babes and animals?"

"Laari tae ya a secret, Kwa-Ga. Tha Chief is ole one. Tha Chief na memba."

"He's senile. The leader of your island is old and senile."

"Ceena?"

"It means he's not completely aware of what is happening around him."

"Ya! Tha's heem!"

"So then why did he call Jedi here?"

"Dunno."

"Just, never mind. I need a favor, Laari. Can you help us?"

Laari looked over at Obi-Wan again. He connected with him because they were both young and sometimes the young needed to be cared for. "A kin hel ya."

"Can you get us more food and medical supplies? I need bandages and pads to clean wounds. Could you get those for us?"

"Tha saplies aa fa Ahbee-Wa?"

"Yes, for Obi-Wan. His wounds could lead to sickness if they aren't cleaned properly. I've not cleaned them as they should be, since my supplies were limited. I'm worried he might become ill." Qui-Gon had seen Laari's interest in Obi-Wan's condition and figured he could work it to his favor. The tiny blue babe seemed to care about the apprentice. "Obi-Wan is young like you. A babe in the Jedi. He needs help right now."

Laari nodded. "Babes look ou fa each otha. I don wan Ahbee-Wa ta git eel! I help ya, Jedi.

Qui-Gon bowed his head.

"Bah, I ga fava ta ask ya, Jedi. Ya nah tell Meetah tha I was heah?"

"I won't utter a word about it."

"Ya gud, Jedi. I see ya t'marra morn."

With those final words, the blue babe hurried away, leaving a puzzled Jedi behind. Obi-Wan stirred and opened his eyes as Qui-Gon quickly got the fire started. "Master, what was all that talking? I kept hearing this little squeaky voice saying 'na' and 'ga' and 'fa'. Sounded like when Creche Master Valdis used to tell stories to us when we were small. Very irritating."

"That, Obi-Wan, was Laari. I ventured a bit deeper into the forest, where I found all the firewood by the way. Laari was sneaking around, spying on us. Turns out, he was eaten by the monster because he was teasing it, and the monster hates that, the monster only eats the dead animals, not live healthy ones, the Chief is old and senile and no one has any clue as to why we are here."

"That's nice, Master."

"However, if it counts for anything, little Laari is on our side now. He feels bad that you're injured but appreciates that I am caring for you, like Meetah has done with him, so he says. Odd little thing, but helpful. He's going to bring us food and medical supplies tomorrow morning."

"What about his mother, Meetah?"

"Since he snuck out of the hut, he would rather us not mention anything about this to her."

Shaking his head in confusion, Obi-Wan could do little more than nod. "I wish I could say that all makes sense, Master. But it doesn't. And it only makes my head hurt even more."

Qui-Gon reached over and put a hand on Obi-Wan's forehead. "You feel warm."

"Just the heat from the fire."

"The fire hasn't been going that long. Nice try though. You're either reacting from a fly bite, or a wound is infected somewhere. There's nothing I can do tonight though. Or until we get the medical supplies. Tomorrow we'll take a look. The last thing we need is for you to be ill on top of all else that's happened. And we're also going to figure out a way off this island, or demand the reason we are here."

"'kay, Master. I trust you. I'll be right here if you need any help." Obi-Wan's head fell to one side and his eyes slid closed again. A pat on the knee from his teacher, and he was left alone to sleep through the night.

* * *

Tbc…


	4. Chapter 4

Monster – Part 4

* * *

"Kwa-Ga! Kwa-Ga!" The sharp little voice sounded from the forest. It was moving towards the Jedi's camp. Laari came shooting through the forest, his tiny hands full of food. He yelled Qui-Gon's name until he ran right into the big man and dropped everything onto the sandy ground. "Oof! Kwa-Ga? I ga ya fud."

"I see that. It'll be a little crunchy now with sand all over it. Thank you."

"I ga ya saplies, buh I nah ha enna ma arms ta kerra."

"You carried a lot here, Laari. Where did you leave the supplies?"

"Otha side aa tha wuds. Hurra nah, befa ennaone sees."

The supplies were many, and Qui-Gon breathed a sigh of relief. He would be able to treat Obi-Wan's wounds properly. "Laari, did you raid the doctors hut?"

"Nah, Doc Healah's babe, Baris, he help ma. Baris say he poke ya en tha knee yestade."

"Yes, there was a lot of knee poking going on yesterday. Please tell Baris thank you."

"Ya keen hel Ahbee-Wa?"

"I certainly can help Obi-Wan."

Laari watched the Jedi take some of the supplies to where his apprentice still lay exhausted against the rocks. The fever had gone up during the night, but was manageable. Tapping a large hand against the boy's face, Qui-Gon woke him.

"Obi-Wan, wake up. I've got supplies and food."

Where there was no reaction, Laari, having followed Qui-Gon, tried to help. "Ahbee-Wa! Ya geet up nah!"

Obi-Wan withdrew at the small shriek voice. "Master, what is that? Make it stop." He finally opened his eyes and saw Laari staring at him with a mix of humor and concern. "Oh. Hi Laari."

"Makes a good alarm clock, doesn't he?" Qui-Gon smiled towards his leaner.

"Oh yeah. Great."

"Since you're awake, take your tunic off. Time to clean some wounds."

Reluctantly agreeing, the tunic came off and both got their first good look at what the wounds had become with limited treatment. The many spear wounds were scabbed over, but most were bruised. One of them however, was rather ugly. The area located on Obi-Wan's shoulder was purple and black and bleeding blood and puss.

Qui-Gon motioned towards the shoulder wound as he said, "And there would be our infection."

He didn't need to warn his learner to grit his teeth prepare for the discomfort that would follow. Laari had brought more supplies than he could have anticipated, and it allowed Qui-Gon to sterilize the small knife that carried with him in his belt pouch and use that as a tool to clean the wound. Obi-Wan closed his eyes and fell into the Force for the next fifteen minutes, easing the pain until Qui-Gon finished the cleaning.

"I'm hoping this salve will help in the healing. And we'll patch things up and move on to the next problem." The only other area of concern was the bandaged part on Obi-Wan's left side. Thirty minutes later, that too was taken care of.

"Thank you, Master."

Laari moved closer and poked Obi-Wan in the chest. "Ya steel alive, Ahbee-Wa. Kwa-Ga is aa gud doctah."

"That he is, Laari," Obi-Wan said as he smiled at the two before him. "Can we eat something now?"

Once they had nourishment in their stomachs and some of the paleness had retreated from Obi-Wan's face, Qui-Gon decided it was time to revisit the Chief again, and not leave until they had more information about the exact reason they were on this planet. As they stood, Laari wavered back and forth and laughed.

"Ya fee it? Tha isle movin agin. Rollin in tha waves."

"I told you, Master! I told you this island was moving. Thank the force I'm not losing my mind after all."

"Ya. Bee movin fa ages. Nah eva tha same."

"You mean it moves constantly? It actually floats from where it is one day to another?"

Laari nodded. "Fees funi, ha?"

"Feels very funny. But why does the island move? Usually islands are not mobile pieces of land."

"Monstah!"

In unison, both Jedi let their heads drop. Qui-Gon closed his eyes and looked over at Laari finally. "The monster makes the island move?"

"Ya. Sweesh tha tail an we flo up an don."

"All right. I think I'm starting to figure this out." The elder Jedi lowered his voice so that only his apprentice could hear. "This monster appears to be more legend than anything, and the legend has become real to them. None of them can offer a description of the creature, not even Laari who was supposedly eaten by it. Although he claims to know where it lives. It terrorizes the village, but there's no evidence that it even exists. And now it can move islands with a swish of its tail? Who knows what else it might be able to do." He turned back to Laari. "Laari, the monster that can move the island, it's the same one that eats babes and livestock?"

"Thas tha monstah!"

"What else is he responsible for?"

"When tha beastie is sad, wata faa fra tha skyee. Beastie is hungra, tumi rumba an cauz isle ta rumba. Beeg ween come when beastie yawn an sleepin."

"So, his tears cause rain. Hunger pains cause earthquakes. And his yawns cause high winds."

"Master, this is how they view the force of nature. They think it's caused by a monster."

"Of course it still doesn't explain why we are here."

"I don't think anything can explain that."

"It's time we leave this island and this planet. I'm just not certain on how we go about doing that."

"I can't go back on that boat, Master. Not in the condition I'm in right now." Obi-Wan's face actually paled to green at the mention of the boat. It took him a short time to get his stomach under control. "Please, Master."

"There may not be another alternative, Padawan."

Laari, who had been picking at his right flippered claw, suddenly jumped in. "Wha ya theenkin, Jedi?"

"How to get home."

"Aaah." Laari picked up a hint of sadness in Obi-Wan's response. "Ya eel fa ya hom planeet?"

"Not homesick so much as concerned how we will be able to leave your planet."

"Ya nah like Capn' Looaki's boat?"

"No."

"Laari nah like eitha. Ya ga unda tha sea. I keen git ya aa ride."

Curious, but wary, Obi-Wan pursued. "Under the sea? As in _inside_ a vehicle?"

"Ya," Laari giggled. "Ya seely, Jedi. We ga subbo. Tha beastie don botha subbo. I theenk he skeered."

Qui-Gon assumed that by subbo, Laari meant a submerged transport of some sort. He wondered how Laari could get them onto one. "We would like to see the subbo, Laari. Can you show us?"

"Na yet. I ga sha ya tha monstah's hom."

"Ah, yes. I did forget about that. Can we go now?"

"Falla Laari!"

The blue blur took off in the direction that the Jedi had gone yesterday in search of the monster. Qui-Gon jogged to keep up. Obi-Wan was slower to get moving. The pain in his side and the low grade fever still playing with his ability to commit completely. "I'll catch up, Master."

The area where Laari finally stopped was not far from the trap that the Jedi had gotten stuck in the previous day. He pointed a flipper at the hills just beyond. A thin stream of smoke fizzled from somewhere just beyond. "Monstah tha." Then he looked around and only saw Qui-Gon nearby. "Wha Ahbee-Wa?"

"He's on his way. Slowly." A short time passed and the master saw no sign of his apprentice. A slight twinge of worry crept into this thoughts. He beeped the boy's com link. "Obi-Wan?"

The delayed reply came back. "Yes, Master?"

"Where are you?"

"Ah, um. Remember those little hunter spear guys from yesterday?"

"Not again."

"Yes. Again. They said that if I disturb the monster, he'll get mad and start eating babes and throwing fire. Laari didn't say anything about fire, Master."

"I'll find out. Can you get away from them?"

"They mean business, Master. I'm bleeding from at least another seven or eight spear holes. One of them got me in my left eye. It's…painful. And I hit my head again."

"Can you see out of that eye?"

"I can partially open it, and things are blurry. And I feel sick."

"Anything else?"

"That about covers it. Can I use the force on them, Master? Just to scare them a little or to lift them out of way. I know that's not a proper use of the force, but…"

Qui-Gon shook his head in disbelief at the continued problems his apprentice was suffering through, and all in less than forty-eight hours. "Just be sensible, Obi-Wan. Don't hurt them or yourself in the process."

"I'll try, Master." A click ended the conversation and the young Jedi took a deep breath, opening and closing his one good eye, then calling on the Force. It was difficult, as part of his concentration was trying to prevent the pain from getting in the way, but he found enough power to lift the band of hunters up and off the ground for almost thirty seconds. Their shock was enough to panic them and when they're feet touched the forest floor again, they reacted to that panic by attacking Obi-Wan with even more force. Then without warning, they were again lifted and tossed backwards. Again their panic drove them to attack. Obi-Wan had nothing left trying to fend them off as one spear point after another broke flesh.

The attack ended when the spears were ripped from their grasps and tossed several hundred yards away. Without their weapons, they were helpless. With high pitched wails, they retreated and disappeared.

Obi-Wan's head fell back in relief as he felt the familiar presence of his teacher approaching. "Thank you, Master."

"You sounded a bit worried on the com. Thought I might help. Determined little monsters, aren't they?"

"Please, Master, don't say the word monster anymore."

The silence of the forest all around them, Qui-Gon knelt down to his leaner and put both hands on his face. "That eye looks bad. With a little luck, it'll swell shut."

"With a little luck, we'll be off this island, planet, whatever, soon."

"Laari showed me the direction to go to find the mons…creature's lair. Then he ran off."

"Let's get this over with then."

With assistance, Obi-Wan was on the move. They approached the hills, heading towards the smoke stream. When they arrived at the source of the smoke, they found not a monster, but a very large geyser spewing hot mist several hundred feet into the air.

"So, the monster lives in the geyser?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Or the geyser is the monster. The mist rains on them. When it a geyser erupts, it may cause small tremors through the island and that's why you've been feeling the island rocking slightly."

"And it eats children?"

Qui-Gon pursed his lips. "That one I can't explain. Perhaps a child fell into it and it erupted at that moment and 'spit' him back out?"

The younger Jedi shrugged, he didn't know. Honestly he didn't really care. He just wanted off the planet. Never had he so desired to return to Coruscant. "What do we do now?"

"We shall be patient, Obi-Wan. And wait. We'll stay here tonight and see if any creature presents itself."

"As long as I can sleep." Obi-Wan carefully lowered his aching body to the lush grass not far from the geyser. The constant mist seemed to create a warming affect which he welcomed. Qui-Gon checked over his wounds. The only one of any major concern was the left eye, which as expected had swelled shut. The purple and black bruising around it was forming quickly.

"I stuffed some of the medical supplies into my belt pouches, should something happen. Sit still and let me see if I can clean around your eye."

Obi-Wan flinched at the touch, the area extremely sensitive. "Relax, Padawan. Let this be a lesson in patience and pain control using the force."

"Yes, Master."

Working quickly, Qui-Gon knew the force could only help to an extent, and in the condition his student was in now, that extent wasn't about to last very long. Still, he was impressed with Obi-Wan's effort. "All right," he said soon after. "Not that you can, but don't open that eye. That is my best medical advice."

"Healer Terran would be proud, Master."

"Not really. Lie back and rest. If a monster should appear this afternoon or evening, I'm sure you'll know."

The grass provided a soft mattress on which to sleep for which Obi-Wan was pleasantly surprised. He was also asleep within minutes - with the assistance of his master's touch to the force of course.

Now with the boy resting, Qui-Gon could focus on his surroundings. Not much of anything really. Grass. Hills. Mountains in the distance. The forest. The one geyser. A few birds danced through the cloudless sky. Animal calls echoed through the valleys. But there was nothing that might be mistaken for a giant child eating monster.

Afternoon melded into evening, and evening became night. The dark sky rapidly filled with bright stars. New animals announced themselves with song and most were answered with similar tunes that resonated an octave higher. Qui-Gon found it relaxing. The living force flowed easily during times like this. He knew also that he could probably enjoy this planet had it not been such a confusing mess since they'd arrived. He doubted Obi-Wan felt the same.

Nighttime wore on and the geyser erupted high into the black sky. As it rained down, small pockets of flashing light appeared in the falling mist and disappeared with a light popping sounds. It reminded the Jedi of celebrations on Coruscant when fireworks rained around the city to the amazement of both Jedi and non-Jedi children. It often woke Obi-Wan when he was younger, so Qui-Gon wasn't surprised when it woke him again. Even at seventeen years of age, he hadn't grown out of his love of fireworks.

"Master, what's that sound?"

"The geyser is active tonight and creating a rather colorful light show."

Obi-Wan opened his one good eye and propped himself onto an elbow to watch. Even he had to admit that despite the troubles on this mission, the nature this planet offered was beautiful. The people though were just a little too insane for his taste.

The show continued through the next hour when the Jedi heard rustling in the nearby bushes. Qui-Gon shook his head when he felt the tiny familiar presence. Laari. The blue babe tried unsuccessfully to disguise his voice, taking it a tone deeper than it was.

"Wha ya doin hea, Jedi? Ya killin tha beastie?"

"Laari, come out of the bushes." And he did, walking towards them with a big goofy smile on his face.

"Ya kna es Laari? Ha ya kna, Kwa-Ga?"

"I'm a good guesser."

Laari then got a look at the younger Jedi. "Ahbee-Wa! Tha monstah git ya?"

"Only if the monster consists of ten tiny little blue creatures like yourself. With spears."

"Naa, tha monstah na ga na speas. The monstah don nee na speas."

Qui-Gon patted the area between he and Obi-Wan, inviting Laari to sit. Laari welcomed spending time with his two new friends and he sat eagerly. With a flippered hand, he touched Obi-Wan's swollen face.

"Tha beastie na hurt tha Jedi."

"No, it didn't," Qui-Gon said and then decided to reveal the truth to Laari – if he wanted to believe it. "Laari, you see this thing in front of us. It's a giant hole in the earth and it sprays water and heat into the air."

"Ya. Tha wata pit skeers Laari. Gits angra when tha babes git nea."

"It's not angry and it doesn't know when anyone comes near. It just, it has a routine. A pattern. It expels the hot water so that it doesn't hmm…explode."

"That wata pit ganna boom?"

"No, it won't boom as long as it's allowed to spit out the hot water. That water hole is called a geyser."

"Ga-sa?"

"Close enough. And that geyser is your monster."

"Tha beastie? Na. Tha beastie is beeg as tha skyee. Tha ga-sa na eatin na babes. Tha na tha monstah."

"Nothing is eating the babes. You said yourself that no babes were actually eaten. And that the monster doesn't eat animals that are still alive. Although I'm still confused about the part where it eats dead animals, but I suspect those spear guys that hang around in the woods might be responsible for that. This is the monster, Laari. When it rumbles, the island moves. And every so often, it rumbles so hard that it causes a really big tremor and the island does actually get pushed from one location to another. So, there's no need to be afraid of the monster anymore. There is no monster. Just a big hole in the ground that spits water."

Laari wasn't really convinced as he stared at the geyser, and stared at it, and stared at it. He stared too long that it actually rumbled. He felt the island move under his body. And then he began to believe what that Jedi was saying.

"Na monstah?"

"No monster."

"Na ganna eat tha babes?"

"No. I really don't know how that story started anyway."

"Hmm. Wa we du nah?"

"About what?"

"Na beastie."

"Right. Now you can continue with your lives without worrying about a monster eating the village."

"Ga nathin wit na beastie. We nee tha monstah."

"What?" It was Qui-Gon's turn to be confused.

Obi-Wan thought he was beginning to figure this mystery out. "Master, I think the monster gives them something to talk about. Something to share stories over. It sort of brings them together. Without a real monster, they have nothing like that anymore. Things may get… well, things may get boring without the monster legend to worry over."

"Ya, wha Ahbee-Wa say. Na monstah, na fun."

"Interesting." Qui-Gon pondered with a hand to his beard then realized that without 'killing' the monster, they weren't permitted to leave the island. "Laari, I take it that you don't want the real truth about the monster to be told."

"Nah. Tha monstah ga stay breathin'. Ya Jedi na tae tha Chief, ya?"

"Well, if we don't kill the monster, the Chief says we can't leave the island."

"Ya believin' tha? Memba, tha Chief is ole. Ya don leesen ta heem. Laari git ya off tha isle. When ya wan ga?"

"We'd like to go as soon as possible, at first light."

"Na prob, Jedi. I ga git subbo reada ta ga."

"You, you're a pilot?"

"Nah, na yet. I nah beeg e'nuff yet. Capn Waakee tae ya off tha isle."

Obi-Wan couldn't help it and burst out laughing, causing pain throughout his body and face. "Captain Whacky will take us?"

"Ya. Na worree. He na relation ta Capn Lunaki."

"Normally, Laari, I'd be relieved about that, but I will remain guarded."

"Ahbee-Wan, ya skeer?"

"Not scared. Nervous."

"Subbo is fas. Ya git ta tha main isle an on ya way hom befa ya kna it."

"I hope you are right, Laari."

"I ga nah. See ya t'marra, Jedi aa ya beach."

"We will certainly be there, Laari. Thank you." Qui-Gon tapped the little being on the shoulder and sent him on his way. The master then turned to his apprentice. "Can you manage the long walk back?"

"If it means getting off this crazy piece of land, I'll walk until my legs fall off, Master."

"I certainly hope it doesn't come to that, but stay close. The dark combined with your one eye handicap could well be hazardous."

"It was hazardous when I was perfectly healthy."

Qui-Gon offered the boy a smile and led them through the plains, forests and valleys. They arrived at their beach camp hours later and waited for the sun to begin its ascent. First light came as did their readiness to leave. All they needed now was Laari to come for them.

"Master, I will admit, I'll miss Laari. He's been interesting. If he has any say in these people's future, that'll be a good thing."

"A very outspoken little guy, isn't he?"

"Very. And sneaky. Feisty. Brave. And he seems to know what's best for this crazy place, even at his young age, however young that may be."

"We could come back to visit."

"Oh no. Never in a million years, Master. I'm done with this place."

Kneeling in front of his apprentice, Qui-Gon put his hands on Obi-Wan's face to examine the bad eye. "It's ugly. And I don't think you'll be getting any relief to the swelling any time soon. Best prepare for life with one eye for a brief time. At least until we get home."

"It's okay. Once we get back to the main island and get a transport to the next planet, we can find something for pain there."

"We can. I'd forgotten that we can't get a transport from the main island home. But there is a regular rotation of flights to the closest neighboring planet. They are more human friendly there. We'll find something to help you manage for the trip home."

The older Jedi finished his exam just as Laari came waddling down the beach. He raised a single flipper in the air and yelled to the Jedi.

"Ya falla, Laari, Jedi. Subbo na ganna be tha fa long."

They hurriedly strode behind Laari for a ten minute jog around a rocky bend where they found another sandy area. A small glass enclosed oval awaited them.

"Master, that thing is no bigger than our tent. We'll never get anywhere in that."

"You mean the tent that these people burnt down because we were late for a meeting?"

"Well, yes. I see your point. We will make this work. I just want off this place."

An older blue being popped his head out of the subbo's hatch. Captain Waakee. He was not a patient man. "Git in, Jedi or I leeve ya. Ya ganna haft ta hunch ova. Tha subbo na made fa ya tall Jedi."

Laari agreed. "Ya, ya tall, Jedi."

"Yes, I am aware of my height. So, we'd better go," Qui-Gon said as he motioned Obi-Wan forward. "Laari, thank you for your help and concern. And for getting us away." He leaned to whisper. "I hope your monster can give you many more years of fun and scary stories."

"Ya. Tha beastie neva ganna dyee! Ya gud, Jedi. Tae care of Ahbee-Wa. Na let heem stay eel."

"I will take care of him, I promise."

"Ah, Kwa-Ga?"

"Yes?"

"Ya gan unda tha wata. Ya watch ou fa tha wata monstah. Tha wata monstah falla subbo aa tha time."

"Water monster. Okay. We should go now. Obi-Wan, get on board."

"Master, did he just say there's a water monster that chases the sub?"

"Yes. Pretend you didn't hear that."

Captain Waakee gave a final warning. "I leevin ya Jedi."

"Obi-Wan, get in."

"But, Master!"

"Unless you want to stay in this loony place for force knows how long, get in."

They crunched themselves into the subbo hatch, practically sitting on top of each other to avoid sitting on the pilot thinking that crushing the pilot might be counterproductive to getting them home.

As they began their descent into and under the dark sea, the waves quickly began crashing against the hull and were soon replaced by pulses of water that pushed against the sub as it submerged.

The final glimpse they grabbed of the fanatical little island was of a tiny blue babe named Laari waving goodbye - as the dark sea coiled around the sub to begin the Jedi on their journey home.

And oh my would they have stories to tell.

* * *

_The End_


End file.
